Action RPG

RPGs like Avowed need to stop letting me steal everything that isn’t nailed down

BBG News

Life in the Vital Terrains is no picnic. In the game of Avowed, I encounter people who are either struggling against nature, lawbreakers, or political turmoil. They share their heartrending tales with me, promising to aid them as best as I can. Yet, when I enter their home, I take everything they own.

As a devoted enthusiast, let me express my perplexity: it’s hard to believe we’re in 2025 and yet some role-playing games (RPGs) still haven’t addressed this issue. I’m not suggesting that the ability to pilfer items should be removed altogether. What irks me is the lack of repercussions or reactions when you swipe things. It’s as if real-world cupboards and shelves are indistinguishable from the treasure chests and weapon racks in dungeons – no one seems to notice or care! This inconsistency leaves me a bit frustrated, to say the least.

In every settlement within Avowed, an element repeatedly undermines my immersion: Characters seem indifferent to their possessions being taken, regardless of need or circumstance. For instance, these refugees are on the brink of starvation, yet they don’t react when I help myself to their remaining food. Even the proprietor of the city’s most prestigious shop lets me casually enter his stockroom and rummage through his valuable goods. After an important discussion with a cryptic oracle regarding my soul and destiny, I can simply walk up to her bedroom, steal her jewelry, and read her personal diary – it’s just preposterous.

The latest offender among the Avowed series is facing the same issue that last year’s Dragon Age: The Veilguard encountered – it seems this issue is deeply ingrained in Japanese Role-Playing Games (JRPGs). These high-budget adventures invest greatly to build an immersive world and captivating story, yet they unintentionally weaken themselves by including a specific feature. I can’t figure out the reasoning behind this persistent problem.

As a gamer, I get that I’m the one pressing the buttons, but it feels like many games, including Avowed, rely on you playing the role of an insatiable thief. The game’s gear upgrade system has me constantly scavenging for materials, and there are often unique items tucked away in other players’ belongings—ignoring all this to uphold my character’s integrity seems counterproductive to a successful playthrough. In a way, the game is encouraging me to breach its own reality. Sometimes, crucial plot details are even hidden in these hoards, shaping my understanding of the story without the narrative ever acknowledging the theft that uncovers them.

1. Unique Weapons: Secure them as soon as possible

2. Totem of Rightful Rulership: Locate all its fragments

3. Intimidating Feline Armor Piece: Solve the riddle for the treasure map

4. Kai Romance: Overcome challenges together

5. Avowed Ygwulf: Deal with the assassin tactfully

It’s clear that not every game incorporates a comprehensive crime-and-punishment system, and I get that too. Titles such as Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 and Baldur’s Gate 3 offer immersive roleplaying opportunities for thieves, allowing players to sneak past characters, bypass locks, and acquire illicit treasures. These games feature guards who can apprehend you, impose penalties, or even establish a persistent criminal reputation that follows your character from one town to another. However, creating such a system is a substantial undertaking, and many RPGs instead choose to prioritize other aspects of gameplay. Avowed, on the other hand, is designed to be more modest in scope, and its world isn’t intended to react in that way – that’s perfectly fine by me.

Instead of cluttering every household and storefront with piles of goods, why not restrict valuable items if a security system isn’t affordable? Leaving everything out invitingly seems unnecessary—can’t we just rely on that principle? It seems the concern is that players might get bored in settlements without an abundance of loot. Or perhaps it’s thought that intermittent rewards are essential to keep players interacting with their surroundings. I don’t find this necessary, though—in RPGs, I appreciate the contrast between urban and wilderness exploration, and side quests can compensate for any lack of loot.

Is it possible I might be overanalyzing this? Quite possibly. There are likely numerous gamers who don’t mind if a game doesn’t acknowledge them emptying every house in a town, and some may not have even pondered if it’s an issue. However, for me, roleplaying games serve as a means to embody a character and get engrossed in another realm. Anything that frequently reminds me I’m playing a game could potentially reveal the artifice behind the experience, transforming a struggling kingdom into merely a list of tasks to accomplish. RPG developers, if you’re going to allow me to steal a man’s life savings for a better hat, perhaps a small penalty would be appreciated to maintain the immersion.

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2025-02-21 20:02

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